Tables Turned
by falcon-121
Summary: What if Reid hadn't shot Tobias in "Revelations?" When Reid is shot down by Tobias, how will the team react? One-shot. *DISCLAIMER* I do not own Criminal Minds.


**AN: I wrote this one-shot in September for a prompt in the One-Shot Fridays thread of the CBS CM Message Boards. The prompt was: **_**Pick a case from the show. It can be any case, any episode you choose, just make sure that it has already happened. Take a scene, pick a character and write from their emotional state at the time of that scene. You can make the event/scene more or less traumatic if you need to (like killing a character if you find it necessary for your story), or you can write it exactly as it happened on the show. If you have any questions, just let me know, I'll be happy to answer them. Good luck!**_ ** This one is from the end of "Revelations." I thought it'd be interesting to see how JJ (who was already blaming herself) would act if things had ended a little worse, so I decided to change up that last confrontation between Reid and Tobias a bit (Tobias shoots Reid, then is shot dead by one of the agents behind him). That's why I'm calling this one "Tables Turned," because the tables are turned compared to what actually happened. If you have a suggestion for a better title, I'd be happy to hear it. Feel free to review. **

"Call an ambulance," Hotch yelled as he saw Reid go down. He rushed quickly to his colleague, but not nearly as fast as JJ and Morgan. They were at their friend's side in no time. Morgan applied pressure to the gaping hole in Reid's stomach while JJ tried to comfort him.

"Spence, look at me," she said, trying to hold back the tears and keep her composure. "Stay with me, Spence!"

The ambulance arrived five minutes later, and Reid was quickly placed on a stretcher and driven away, with Morgan jumping into the back of the ambulance to support his little brother. As the sirens blared away, JJ sat in the leaves. Her eyes, normally so bright and youthful, were dull and lifeless. She felt numb. The only thing she knew was that all of this was her fault. She could have stopped Spence from splitting up. She could have chased after him instead of standing beside that damn barn. She could have helped the team to find him quicker. She could have shot Tobias earlier than she did. A single tear trickled down her cheeks, the heat of it stung her as it slid down. So maybe she wasn't numb, only guilty. She heard some crunching in the leaves and a shadow approached her, but she didn't look up. Aaron Hotchner kneeled down to her right side, then took a seat. He sat there in silence for a few moments, then spoke up.

"Tell me what happened," he said softly.

"What do you mean," JJ asked. "Isn't it obvious? Reid is heading to the hospital with a hole the size of a quarter in his stomach, and it's all my fault."

"What happened when you two first arrived at Tobias' house," Hotch asked, staying patient. "How did you handle things when you thought he was a witness, how did you find out that he was the Unsub, and what happened after that?"

JJ paused and took a deep breath as she tried to recall the events of last night.

"We went up to Tobias' door, asked if we could come in. He said no, he doesn't let anyone in his house. We were about to leave... we should have left... but we had found something suspicious. Reid went to the side of the house and I followed. His mind was going a million miles an hour and I was having trouble keeping up. We found out that Tobias was the Unsub, he knew we knew so he ran off towards the barn. We gave chase, Reid leading the way. I should have grabbed him by the arm, I should have called for backup. We get behind the barn, Reid thinks he knows where Tobias is so he says that we should split up and runs off. I should have done something. .."

"What happened next?"

"I thought that Reid may have gone into the barn, so I entered... I stepped in something, then there were the dogs and the rest was just too fast, I can't remember anything else."

"Did you try to stop Reid from splitting up?"

"... Yes. I tried. I tried to tell him that it wasn't a good idea, I tried to grab him, but Spence was too quick. He was gone before I could do anything. And now he could die because I couldn't do anything..."

Hotch laid a comforting hand on JJ's shoulder.

"JJ," he said, "This isn't your fault. You did everything you could. You did a great job. I know that, Reid knows that, the whole team knows that. Reid will pull through, and when he does he'll need you there for support. You can't do that if you are blaming yourself for something you didn't do. This is Tobias' fault, plain and simple. But no one can make you forgive yourself, that is something that you have to figure out on your own. Nothing that anyone says is going to solve that."

JJ felt Hotch pull her in a little closer. She would normally object to being coddled, but even she had to admit that it was comforting. She turned her head into his shoulder and the floodgates broke. She let it all out, crying for about five minutes. When she finished, she sniffled a few times, looked at Hotch and smiled weakly. She picked herself up, brushed herself off, and walked to the SUV with Hotch as an escort. She had her moment of weakness, now it was time to stay strong. If not for herself or her team, then for Reid.


End file.
